Wrap in cheesecloth and then put the cake in one of those round metal cans you always buy fruitcakes in. Or you can bury it in powdered sugar. Using a can is not as messy.

Rum is good, especially the orange flavored rum. Fill up a shot glass and then pour it all over the wrapped fruitcake, and usually repeat 1 or 2 more times, depending on how strong you like it. You don't want the cake to be squishy. You don't need to refrigerate the cake because the alcohol preserves it.

[] So much for the fruitcakes. Now here is a project for a different day. Be sure you choose a day which will be followed by another day you do not have to work away from home. They need to dry overnight on your counter and be baked the next day. It is a BIG project, but fun and very worthwhile. []

SPRINGERLE
To make authentic Springerle, you will need a special rolling pin. It has squares on it, each with a different picture. They are not expensive. Most kitchen shops have them.

1/2 pound butter (no substitutes)
4 pounds powdered (confectioner’s) sugar
16 eggs
1/2 tsp ammonium carbonate (pound or shave it to powder before using)
1 pinch salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp oil of anise (buy at drug store or boutique)
10 lb flour

Melt butter, add sugar. Add whole eggs and beat one hour. Add ammonium carbonate, salt, baking powder, and oil of anise. Mix well. Add enough flour to make a stiff dough. At this point, take it out of your bowl and put it onto a floured board so you can knead in the rest of the flour. It should take very nearly the whole 10 lbs.

Roll, cut, let stand overnight (see below). Bake at 300 degrees F for 10-20 minutes on ungreased pans. Store in coffee cans; keep in freezer if you prefer; They will keep for years! They probably have a half-life of 10,000 years. The archaeologists could eat them after they have dug up our civilization. mmmmm

Additional instructions: 1. Getting in all that flour is sometimes difficult - I have a butcher's block (a real one, from an old butcher shop), and I just put the mixture there and knead in the flour, exactly as one would knead bread.

2. Where it says "roll, cut, let stand overnight," it means that one should take out a lump the size of a cantaloupe and roll it in a rectangular shape with a regular rolling pin, and have the rectangle the same width as the Springerle rolling pin (mould), and about 3/8 inch thick. Then roll it with the Springerle pin and cut the squares with a French Chef knife.

Cover your countertop and table with waxed paper, and place the cookies on it, with little spaces in between each cookie, so they will dry nicely. If you have cats, do whatever you have to do to keep them from jumping on the cookies during the night. (Or hire security guards.)

3. Plan to get up early to start your baking. Place the cookies on the baking sheets with about 1/2 inch space surrounding each cookie. When they are done, they will not be brown; they will be a very little bit
golden-looking on the bottoms.

4. Make sure they are thoroughly cooled before putting them into plastic bags then into coffee cans or whatever storage medium you want to use. It is not necessary to freeze them if they will be eaten this year. When I moved, I found some Springerle in a coffee can in the cupboard, and they were dated 11 years prior! They were still lovely.

They would probably last forever if frozen.

[] One year, during the week after Thanksgiving, my friends came to visit. We started our Springerle on Monday. Tuesday, while baking the Springerle, we mixed several small batches of different cookies, and put the dough into the fridge. Wednesday, we baked the “different” cookies, and after they were cooled, we distributed them among about 20 small boxes which we had lined with plastic wrap. When each box had about 2 dozen cookies, we sealed the plastic wrap and wrapped the boxes in gift wrap. Some were for Christmas and some were for Hanukkah. They all went into the freezer, and stayed there until the appropriate time to be presented to our respective friends. It was an EXTREMELY big project, and it was EXTREMELY fun. []

HUNGARIAN PASTRY SQUARES
(Jewish)
1 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 jar (12 oz) raspberry preserves
chopped nuts (walnuts and/or pecans)
2 egg whites, beaten

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg yolks, beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, then dry ingredients, well sifted. Pat into a 9 x 13-inch pan. spread with preserves, sprinkle with nuts, spread beaten egg whites thinly. Sprinkle again with nuts. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. Cut into squares when cool.

APRICOT STRUDEL
(Jewish)

2 cups flour
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup sour cream
1 cup apricot preserves
1/3 cup chopped nuts
1 cup shredded or flaked coconut

Cut butter into flour, add sour cream and form dough into a ball. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. Divide dough into 4 parts and roll each part into 12 x 7 inch rectangle on a floured surface. Spread with preserves, sprinkle with nuts and coconut and roll as for a jelly roll. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees F for 45 - 60 minutes.

TARALEEKOOS
(Jewish Sesame Cookies)

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder ( yes, one tablespoon)
1/2 tsp salt
sesame seeds

Beat eggs; add sugar, oil, vanilla, and mix well. Add flour, baking powder, and salt; mix first with large spoon, then with hands until workable. Roll out 1/8 of dough into strip to thickness of finger; cut off pieces about 5 inches long, shape like doughnut and sprinkle with or press into sesame seeds. Repeat for remainder of dough. Bake on greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes. Makes 50 to 60.

Shalom, from Spike the Grate and Jamie the Webmistress

 

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